The Bloody Vampire

Combine all ingredients but the wine over ice and shake vigorously. Strain into a martini glass and garnish with a lime.

This cocktail can easily be made into a punch for kids. Simply increase the percentages of cider and cranberry juice, lose the alcohol, add some ginger ale and pour sparkling cider over the top for the fizz.

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Who doesn’t love Halloween?

In terms of holidays out there, what could be better than one that prompts you to be someone else, brings out the imagination and creativity that lies dormant in most of our everyday lives, and is perfect for kids of all ages? Whether you’re dressing up for the party, bringing your kids around to collect candy, or pretending to be a scarecrow at your house and jumping out to scare someone, Halloween is a great holiday.

These days, Halloween-type events seem to be at every turn, year-round. Costume parties seem to be taking the stage for kids birthday parties, adult dinner parties and themes for restaurants. On TV and in the movies, try to find something that doesn’t have some whiff of vampires. My wife is hooked on everything from “Vampire Diaries” to “True Blood” to “Twilight” — and subsequently has me hooked, as well). Even books are going vampire crazy.

With that said, try to keep in mind a few things when you are out consuming beverages this weekend:

1. The old adage, “Liquor before beer, never fear; beer before liquor, never sicker,” is in essence, true. The reason for this, simply enough, is that liquor has higher amounts of alcohol. So, if you imbibe in beer and then liquor, your body will respond by taking on more alcohol at the end and less time to recover, which generally results in a very rough morning.

2. Hydrate every hour. One of the biggest reasons for a hangover in the morning is because of not properly hydrating throughout the night (let me stress that beer, wine and liquor are not hydrating).

3. Eat something before going out. A full stomach helps the body process the alcohol and slows it from entering the blood stream. This will allow you to last a little longer out there.

4. Avoid super-sugary cocktails and sugary treats. Sugar inhibits ability to realize how much alcohol your enjoying, and the results can be pretty traumatic.

5. For goodness sakes, watch out for the kids Sunday.

At any rate, here are a couple of cocktails that you can imbibe this weekend (at home or at The Skinny Pancake in Burlington.)

Have a happy and safe Halloween.

The Spirit of Benji is a weekly feature with Chris Benjamin. Each week Benjamin — whose nickname is Benji — will offer a recipe for a cocktail you can make at home.